Rashid Khan on removal as Afghanistan T20I captain: Don't know what exactly happened

Afghanistan all-rounder Rashid Khan has said that the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) didn’t inform him before his removal as T20I captain earlier this year. Rashid was removed from the position after Afghanistan were knocked out in the group stage of the T20 World Cup 2026.

The former skipper has said that he only got to know about his removal after the board announced opening batter Ibrahim Zadran as the new skipper.

"Even I don't know what exactly happened at that time. I came to know [about the captaincy change] when the board announced it. Under my captaincy, we reached the T20 World Cup semi-finals; we beat West Indies, but sometimes things are not in your control," Rashid was quoted as saying by Cricinfo.

However, the captaincy snub hasn’t affected Rashid’s commitment to the Afghanistan team.

"But I have moved on now. Whether I'm captain or not, I'm proud that I'm representing Afghanistan and I'm trying to put to use whatever skills and capabilities I have. What I can control is to do well for Afghanistan and make them win,” he added.

Rashid's captaincy record

Despite Afghanistan’s disappointing campaign at the 2026 T20 World Cup, Rashid Khan had a largely positive record as skipper. Afghanistan made it to the semi-finals of a senior men’s ICC event for the first time under his leadership, during the 2024 T20 World Cup. He led Afghanistan in 48 T20Is, winning 26 and losing 22.

Only Asghar Afghan has a better record as an Afghanistan T20I captain, winning 42 out of 52 games. However, his tenure coincided with a period when Afghanistan frequently played against lower-ranked opposition.

Meanwhile, Zadran didn’t have a memorable start to his full-time captaincy during the recent three-match series against India, as Afghanistan lost all three games. While Rashid was terrific in the field, having taken several breathtaking catches, he was taken to the cleaners by Indian batters.

Despite that, he finished as the highest wicket-taker for his team during the series, taking four wickets at an average of 28.25, having an economy rate of 9.82.